A New Chapter
by hersheygal
Summary: Jack dies the day before Kate and Jack’s wedding. Now that Kate is alone, will she ever find love again? Skate with hints of Jate. AU. Also has Hurley and Charlie fun. COMPLETE with Chapter 8!
1. Prologue

Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST or Catch and Release.

A/N: I've been playing around with this story for a while now. I'm taking this from a movie I recently saw called Catch and Release. The movie was stupid, but the plot was ok so I thought I would use it. I'm just using the basic plot because like I said the movie wasn't all that great. They were never on the island, Jack and Kate met and fell in love, and Sawyer is a longtime friend of Jack's.

San Francisco was humid this time of year. Kate hated the humidity and she stayed inside because of it. Kate sat in her living room, reviewing the wedding plans. The next day was her wedding. She was marrying Jack. They had been together for five years, and he had finally proposed to her eight months ago.

She was waiting for him to come home from the hospital. Being a doctor was a very demanding job and she understood.

The doorbell rang, and Kate stood up eagerly. She opened the door.

"Hey!" Charlie and Hurley walked into the house.

"Hey guys. Jack's gonna be here soon, so could you leave?"

Charlie and Hurley looked at each other, and then back at Kate as they laughed.

"Funny Kate." Charlie shook a finger at Kate, and she sighed.

She left them alone. She knew Jack would be able to get them out when he came home.

A couple hours later, Jack had still not come, and Kate sat by herself in the kitchen while Charlie and Hurley watched tv in the other room.

She walked into the living room and watched the guys laughing at the tv. She smiled to herself.

"I'm going to bed. Could you tell Jack when he gets home?"

"Yeah, Yeah sure." Charlie said absently.

Kate walked into the room and went to bed. A couple of hours later, she was shaken awake.

"Kate."

"What?" Kate rubbed her eyes as she stared at Charlie.

"Something happened."

"What?"

"Jack got into a car accident and-"

"What" Kate sat up. "Is he all right?"

Charlie slowly sat down on the bed and held Kate's hands tightly in his own. "Kate, Jack's gone."

A/N: So let me know what you think:) This is a very short prologue but the next chapter will be longer and will set it up more.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Disclaimer:I don't own LOST.

A/N: Thank you guys so much for the reviews. It means a lot to me. Even though Jack has died, I'll probably have some flashbacks to incorporate him in to give you guys more backround info.These first couple of chapters Kate will be kind of disgusted with Sawyer and you'll see why, but that feeling will soon wear off.

* * *

Kate stood in her living room, wearing her slender black dress. She absently watched the people pass her and tell her how sorry they were. They were all Jack's friends. She hadn't had many.

It wasn't fair. She should be wearing her white dress, not the black one. He was there that morning to greet her, and then he was gone. Kate wiped away yet another tear as she thanked the people in front of her.

Kate let the lady hug her, and then she slipped out of her grasp and walked out of the room. She didn't handle funerals well, and she never thought that she would have to go to Jack's. She didn't want all the people in her house, but Jack's mom wanted it, she needed it. Kate understood, but she needed to be alone.

She walked up the stairs and into the bathroom. She slipped into the bathtub and pulled the shower curtain back so no one could see her. Kate breathed deeply and closed her eyes.

Suddenly the door opened and she heard two people come in.

"Oh Sawyer." The girl sighed.

Kate's eyes widened. Sawyer was here? Why was he here? And what was he doing?

"Oh baby, it's just started."

Kate rolled her eyes. She wondered if she should show herself or just wait.

Within a few minutes the girl left, and Sawyer was left alone.

Kate pulled the shower curtain back, and Sawyer jumped. "Kate?"

Kate slowly got out of the tub, and tried to blink back the tears.

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"I never understood why Jack was friends with you." Kate slammed the door behind her as she left and walked down the stairs, wishing the day was over.

Sawyer watched Kate leave and he slumped against the counter. He felt like an idiot. He didn't even know that girl and now he'd hurt Kate. He knew that he was the last thing that Kate needed right now.

He quickly left after that. He didn't want to hurt Kate anymore than he already had. It was the least he could do for Jack. He thought about what Kate had said. He didn't really know why Jack had been friends with him either. They had met senior year of high school, when he had really been a mess, but it had worked out between them. He smiled as he remembered copying off of Jack, and Jack would never complain. And then, four years later, Jack had met Kate, and their friendship had suffered. Sawyer understood. He had had tons of girls while Jack would stay home and study for his medical school. He was glad when Jack had met Kate. It had done wonders for him.

He hadn't seen a lot of Jack after that. He was always with Kate, and Sawyer didn't blame him. Kate was it. She was definitely someone that could keep a guy happy for the rest of his life, and when Sawyer did finally settle down, he liked to think that he would meet someone like Kate.

* * *

A/N: Sorry it's so short, I promise there's some longer chapters coming. Please let me know if I'm doing okay or not. I've never written a Skate WIP before so it's been interesting. 


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST.

A/N: Thank you for reviewing guys! This chapter just deals with how Kate is dealing with Jack's death, and then next chapter there will be lots of fun skate.

That night Kate was in her room undressing and changing into her comfortable clothes. She didn't care who was there anymore. It just seemed like they would never leave. And after Sawyer had left, it had just gotten worse. Everyone wanted to talk to her about Jack and how good he had been, and what things he had done, and the funny things that he would say. It was too much for her.

The door opened and Kate sighed as she waited to see who it was. Charlie poked his head into the room. "Hey." He looked around and then came in and shut the door. "Are you okay?"

Kate saw the concerned look in his eyes and she fell apart in his arms. He held her tightly as she sobbed.

She clung to him and he closed his eyes as he also fought back the tears. Jack had been such a great guy. He and Kate had been perfect together. It was so horrible that this had happened to her.

"Everything's going to be okay Kate."

"No it's not. I loved him so much."

"I know. I know." Charlie rubbed her back. "But we'll get through this. I promise."

"You can't promise that. You know you can't."

"No, but I know you. You'll recover. Soon you'll be painting again, and you'll be discovered and you'll be famous."

Kate shook her head. She was scaring Charlie. He had never seen her like this before.

"Do you want me and Hurley to stay here tonight?"

"No." Kate shook her head and pulled away from Charlie. "That's okay. Thanks." She ashamedly wiped away her tears and started to put her clothes away.

Charlie put a hand on Kate's arm. "I'm not asking. I don't want you to stay here alone."

"Okay." Kate nodded gratefully. "Thanks."

"If you want to talk, I'm here for you."

"I know."

"Do you want to come down with us now?"

"Who's us?"

"Hurley and I."

"Okay."

They walked down the stairs, where Hurley was going through Kate's wedding gifts. "Hey Kate! Do we get to keep this stuff? Here's a waffle maker!"

"I don't know. I've never had this kind of experience before." Kate managed a small smile and Hurley stopped to look at her.

"Oh." He gave a sheepish grin. "How are you doing?"

"I'm okay."

"You need to eat something Kate." Charlie told her gently.

"I'm not hungry." Kate shook her head.

"Why don't I make you something?" Charlie suggested.

"Okay." Kate sat down in the living room and noticed the wedding plans were on the coffee table. She sighed as she leaned over to grab her sleeping medicine.

"What do you want Kate?"

"I don't care."

Charlie went over to the refrigerator and opened it. Inside was the wedding cake. Now he knew why Kate didn't want to go in there.

"Hurley." Charlie beckoned Hurley to come over to him.

"Dude."

"Yeah. What should we do?"

"Eat it."

"No we can't eat it."

"Sure we can."

Charlie reached in and took the two figurines from the top. They easily resembled Jack and Kate. "I'm going to give these to her."

"You can't do that!"

"Well it's a roundabout way of asking if we can eat the cake."

"Oh. Okay."

Charlie walked into the other room. "Hey Kate."

"What?" Kate looked up.

"These were on the cake." Charlie showed them to her and she slowly took them from him.

"Why did this have to happen Charlie?" Kate looked at him pleadingly.

Charlie sighed. He hated this. He didn't understand why this had to happen. "I don't know." Charlie sat down next to her on the couch and she leaned into him as he put his arm around her. "Sometimes these things happen, and we don't know why. Maybe…"

"What?"

"Maybe Jack wasn't meant to marry you. Maybe he wasn't the guy for you."

Kate was silent. "How could you say that? Everyone said that-"

"I know. Maybe we were all wrong."

"But if Jack wasn't the one, then who is?"

Charlie shrugged as he looked away. Could he be the one? He did love Kate, but did he love her that much?

A/N: Love triangle? A little bit. But don't worry it won't affect Skate. :)


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST or Catch and Release

A/N: I finally get to give you guys a long chapter! There's a time jump this chapter. It's about a week later. Also this chapter explains the meaning of the name of this story.

Jack had a small house that all of his friends had the key to. Jack was rich, and he wanted to share it with everyone. It was a really cool idea, because whenever someone went there, they never knew who could be there. For Kate, this wasn't such a cool idea.

She had to go to the cabin to get some of Jack's stuff because some of his documents that she needed were there.

Kate took her key and walked into the small house. It was an old run down house, but it served its purpose. It had three bedrooms and two bathrooms, so it wasn't like it was a really small house, but it was small enough.

She walked through the living room and opened the door to Jack's bedroom.

"Hey." Sawyer said sleepily from the bed.

"Sawyer? What are you doing here?"

" I could ask you the same thing. You don't have to get all mad at me. I'm allowed to be here." He sat up and watched her as she walked over to Jack's desk.

Kate didn't answer as she shifted through Jack's papers.

"Kate I told you I was sorry."

"Sorry doesn't cut it Sawyer. You act as if you don't even miss Jack." Kate kept her eyes on the papers in order to keep herself composed.

Sawyer didn't say anything.

"That's what I thought." Kate stood up and left the room.

Sawyer followed her to the kitchen. "Kate." He stared at her. She looked a mess. Her hair was in every direction, and her clothes seemed like she had slept in them.

He grabbed her arm, and she struggled to get out of his grasp. "You need to take care of yourself."

"I'm fine."

"No you're not. Is there anyone staying with you?"

"Charlie and Hurley."

Sawyer laughed slightly. "Oh okay so then you're taken care of by Pillsbury and that hobbit."

Kate glared at Sawyer. "At least they didn't make out with someone at Jack's funeral."

"Are you ever going to let that go?"

"No. Just like you will never care."

Sawyer let go of her and she left the house. Sawyer shook his head and went back into Jack's room.

A couple of weeks later, Kate was told that she had to give up her house, so she had Charlie and Hurley over to help her get everything in the moving truck.

As she took a large box out to the truck, someone took the box for her. "Here let me get that."

"Sawyer."

"Don't act so excited." Sawyer drawled.

"I won't. What are you doing?"

"Helping. I heard about what happened and I thought I could help."

"Well we're moving to the small house, so you're going to have to deal with us." Kate and Sawyer made their way to the truck.

"What do you mean by 'us'?"

"Pillsbury and the hobbit."

Sawyer laughed, and Kate couldn't help but smile. Sawyer set the box inside the truck and then he leaned against it as he looked at Kate. She was so beautiful.

"Jack was a lucky guy." Sawyer murmured.

"What?"

Sawyer coughed. "Let's go inside."

Kate followed him in and smiled behind his back.

"So they're really moving in with you?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah. They're concerned for me."

"Well did you tell them I'll be there?"

"That's what concerns them."

"Right."

"What are you doing here?" Hurley frowned as he stared at Sawyer in the hallway.

"It's okay Hurley. He's here to help."

"Don't you mean steal or something?"

"Hurley!"

"It's okay Freckles. I get it. You all think I'm horrible."

"Freckles?" Hurley and Kate asked.

"Ain't it obvious? You got all those pretty dots on your face." Sawyer motioned to Kate's face, and Kate reached for her face.

"That's stupid." Hurley said and he left the room.

Kate stared at Sawyer. She actually kind of liked the nickname.

"So do you want me to help or what?" Sawyer asked.

"Yeah." Kate and Sawyer moved into the living room, where Hurley and Charlie were attempting to pick up the couch.

They both picked up a box and went outside again. They set the boxes inside the truck, and then watched Hurley and Charlie come outside with the couch.

"I bet you they'll drop it." Sawyer said.

"They're trying to help me! You are horrible."

Sawyer shrugged.

As Hurley and Charlie reached the truck, Kate and Sawyer took the other two sides and helped lift it into the truck.

For the next couple of hours, the four took more boxes and furniture into the truck.

Charlie and Hurley went ahead to the small house and Sawyer and Kate stayed behind for a few extra minutes. Sawyer watched Kate walk around the house.

"You ready to go Freckles?" Sawyer leaned up against the doorway as she looked around the living room.

"Just give me a minute." She said softly.

Sawyer looked down as Kate started her way up the stairs.

He followed her up the stairs and she went into one of the bedrooms.

"We were going to have kids, and we were going to have the nursery be in here." Kate said as she ran her fingers over the windowsill.

Sawyer ran his tongue across his lips as he stood in the doorway. Just a few minutes ago they had been laughing, and now Kate had the saddest look on her face. He wanted nothing more than to take away her pain, but he knew that she would never let him do that.

"We should go Freckles." Sawyer said softly, not sure of what else to say.

Kate looked up at Sawyer, ignoring the use of her new nickname. "Yeah okay."

She walked past him and into the hallway, and he followed her out the door. Kate fought tears as she locked the door to the house that she and Jack were supposed to spend the rest of their lives in.

They got to Sawyer's car and Sawyer opened the door for Kate. She got in and he made his way to his side. Kate took a deep breath as she collected herself.

Sawyer started the car and then looked at Kate as she buckled herself in. "You okay?"

Kate looked up at Sawyer, not expecting this side to him. "Yeah. Thanks for being here with me. I know it's the last thing you wanted to do."

"I wanted to." Sawyer looked at Kate before looking back at the road. "I want to make sure Jack's girl is taken care of."

Kate closed her eyes.

"I think it's symbolic." Sawyer said five minutes later.

Kate opened her eyes. "What?"

"You closing the door to your house. It's symbolic. You're closing a chapter in your life. In a little while you'll be opening the door to your new house, and you're going to open a new chapter in your life."

Kate nodded. "You're right."

Sawyer smiled. He hoped this new chapter included himself in it, even if it was just as a friend.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys. Here's another chapter, there's some jate at the end, but it's necessary.

Sawyer and Kate reached the house and they walked up the stairs to the porch.

"You wanna open the door?" Sawyer asked.

Kate gave Sawyer a knowing smile as she slowly reached for the doorknob. She turned the knob and opened it, letting out a huge breath.

"See? It's not that bad!" Sawyer grinned.

They walked into the house where they saw Charlie playing his guitar in the living room.

"Hey guys!" Charlie grinned.

"Hey Charlie." Kate set down her purse and keys.

"I've got new inspiration, and it's all because of you!" Charlie said.

"Charlie thinks he's going to be famous someday." Kate explained to Sawyer.

"I will be." Charlie corrected Kate.

"Right. He will be." Kate walked into the kitchen and grabbed a soda.

"Just keep working at it Chuckie. I'm sure you'll get somewhere someday." Sawyer walked into the other room.

"Chuckie?" Charlie questioned. Then he grinned as he stood up and followed Sawyer. "You really think so?"

"Oh don't let it get to you."

Charlie left and went to find Hurley, who was unpacking his things in his room.

"Hey Hurley!"

"What?"

"I don't think Sawyer is as bad as we think he is."

"What did he give you?"

"Nothing."

Hurley just looked at him.

"All right fine. He said that my music was good."

"No he didn't."

"Okay he didn't. But he said that I could be able to go somewhere someday, maybe start a band."

"Don't forget why we're here Charlie. Kate's vulnerable and we're here to protect her."

"I'm not, but I still don't think that Sawyer's as bad as you think he is."

That night Kate and Sawyer sat in the living room going through boxes together while Charlie and Hurley set up the tv.

"Okay one more box down, lots more to go." Kate said as she ripped up the box.

Sawyer took it from her and left the room to grab another. A couple of minutes he walked back in without a box.

"Why don't you have a box?"

"Jack has a lot of boxes. I didn't know if you wanted to go through them."

"No. I'm planning to go to L.A. to give Christian and Margo a bunch of them. I think they would appreciate it."

"That's a good idea. I'll go with you."

"You don't have to do that."

"L.A. isn't too far from San Diego. We could stop by there and you could see my house."

Charlie and Hurley exchanged a glance.

"Yeah." Kate nodded. "That would be nice."

"Okay. We could go next week."

"Okay." Kate and Sawyer smiled at each other before Kate looked away.

Sawyer went to get another box and Charlie and Hurley looked at Kate.

"What?" Kate asked.

Hurley shook his head. "You're right dude." Hurley said to Charlie.

"Right about what?" Kate asked.

Hurley shook his head. "Hand me that cable."

Charlie handed him the cable and Hurley connected it to the tv. "Ok turn it on."

Charlie turned it on.

"All right!" Hurley cheered and gave Charlie a high five.

"You do realize there's a tv in the other room that has the same channels." Kate said.

"Yeah but we like this one better."

Kate rolled her eyes as she stood up. "It's getting late. I'm going to bed."

They told her goodnight and she walked into the hallway where she bumped into Sawyer.

"Whoa. Steady there." Sawyer grabbed onto her arms. "Where are you going in such a hurry?"

"Bed."

He let go of her arms. "Oh. Well, goodnight."

Kate looked up at Sawyer. " 'Night."

He turned as he watched her walk past him into her bedroom.

That night Kate couldn't sleep and she sat up in bed as she looked at the alarm clock. It was three in the morning. She got up and walked into the hallway and headed into the bathroom.

She flipped the light switch on and leaned into the counter as she looked at her face. She did have a lot of freckles. Jack had commented on them many times. She grinned as she remembered Sawyer calling her Freckles, but then she quickly covered her mouth with her hand and peeked out into the hallway. When she was sure no one was around, she slowly closed the bathroom door and leaned against it.

She was acting like a teenager, and for some reason her feelings for Sawyer had changed in an instant. He had always been Jack's friend and nothing more, but now she couldn't help but wonder if Sawyer could be her friend. But she couldn't like him, no it was too soon. She couldn't help but admit to herself that she missed the feeling of falling in love with someone. She had been with Jack for five years. That was no reason for her to flirt with Sawyer now, and she had flirted with him throughout the entire day.

She walked into the hallway and into her bedroom, not letting herself look into the living room where Sawyer was stretched out on the foldable bed that came with the couch. She sat on her bed and sighed. She felt guilty. Was it even possible that he could feel something for her?

(Flashback)

"_I can't believe him." Kate walked around the living room, picking up scattered beer cans._

"_What?" Jack grinned as he watched her bend over._

"_Sawyer comes in here, and acts like it's his own house. I'd be scared to see what his house looks like."_

"_Well you'll never have to because he lives in San Diego. He's only here to have some fun and then he's going back. Don't worry." Jack followed her into the kitchen where she threw out the cans._

"_What bothers me is that you took time off of work to hang out with him, yet you won't take a day off to be with me." Kate turned around and put her hands on her hips._

"_I see you all the time."_

"_What's that supposed to me? You don't want to see me all the time? Because if that's how you feel, I'll leave." _

_Jack smiled and moved towards her. He grabbed her hands and she leaned into him._

"_I like it when you're angry." Jack murmured. _

"_Well in a couple of months we'll be married and I'll have even more reasons to be angry." _

"_You know, sometimes I wonder if you and Sawyer would make a better match."_

"_You're kidding right?" Kate looked up at Jack. _

"_Yeah. I'm kidding."_

_They stood there in silence for a couple of minutes before Jack talked again._

"_But I'm telling you Kate, if you get to know him, he's not that bad of a guy."_

"_I'll believe it when I see it."_

"_If you give him a chance then you would."_

"_Uh huh."_

"_Promise me you'll give him a chance? Not now, but someday."_

"_Okay." _

A/N: There's gonna be a kiss in the next chapter!


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST.

A/N: Once again, another time jump. Another week has gone by. I think you guys will like this chapter.

Kate stood in her room as she examined the wall. She was painting, and she loved it. She was painting the room a light blue, and then she was planning on painting wispy clouds to make it look like the sky.

She took the roller from the pan and continued to go up and down on the walls. Painting gave her something to do. She knew that if she didn't do something then she would think, and if she let herself think, she would think of Sawyer, and she was scared to go there.

"Whoa Freckles. You having fun in here?"

Kate turned around to find Sawyer staring at her. "I wanted a change. The room was kind of boring."

Sawyer walked over to her as he looked at her work. "I like it."

"Yeah."

"You're not planning to paint the whole house now are you?"

"I just might."

Sawyer looked at her and grinned. "You've got paint in your hair, actually, you've got paint everywhere."

Kate shrugged. "What can I say? I'm a messy painter."

"The messiest ones are always the most talented."

Kate smiled. "Should I be offended or should I take that as a compliment?"

"Both."

"Okay." Kate walked into the kitchen and washed her hands off.

"Here." Sawyer handed her a towel and her fingers lingered in his hand for longer than they needed to be.

Kate looked up at Sawyer and their eyes met.

Sawyer cleared his throat and Kate took the towel out of his hand.

"So, you want to go get some ice cream or something?"

"What?"

"Charlie and Hurley will be home soon. Let's go enjoy some peace and quiet before we have to deal with them."

"You talk about them like they're children."

"They sure act like it don't they?"

"Let's go get some ice cream." Kate winked at Sawyer.

Later on they sat on a bench in a park as they ate their ice cream, Sawyer with his waffle cone and Kate with her cup.

"What'd you get?" Sawyer asked.

"Chocolate chip."

"You're boring. I got cheesecake."

"You're disgusting." Kate said teasingly.

"Wanna try it?" Sawyer asked.

"Only if you try mine."

"Okay." Sawyer moved the cone to Kate's face and she took a bite of it. She took a spoonful of her ice cream and put it in Sawyer's mouth.

"So?" Sawyer asked with his mouth full.

"It's okay."

"Okay? It's great."

"What about mine?"

"Yeah yours is good."

Through this ordeal Kate and Sawyer had scooted closer together.

"You've got ice cream on your face." Sawyer reached over to Kate's face and softly wiped the ice cream from her chin.

Kate couldn't help but grin as his touch made her shiver.

Sawyer quickly withdrew his hand, as if he was shocked.

"What's the matter?" Kate said quietly, a feeling coming over her that she couldn't control.

"Nothin'" Sawyer matched her tone as they continued to stare at each other.

Without thinking, Kate reached for Sawyer's face and leaned in to kiss him.

At first Sawyer didn't respond, but then he quickly realized what was happening and started to kiss her back.

A few seconds later Kate pulled back and looked at him with wide eyes as her hand covered her mouth.

"I, I um, I should probably get going." Kate stood up and threw her ice cream in the trash.

Sawyer just stared at her, not sure of what to say. His eyes followed her as she left the area.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST or Catch and Release.

A/N: Okay you guys have been enjoying the fluff but there's gonna be a little angst this chapter.

Kate felt horrible and it wasn't because she was sorry for kissing Sawyer. She shouldn't have ran. She couldn't help it. What made it worse was that she didn't regret it. She felt that she should have. It would be wrong of her not to. She couldn't be in a relationship so soon after Jack died. It wasn't right.

At the same time, if it wasn't right, then Sawyer wouldn't have kissed her back. Maybe it was okay. Maybe they could have a relationship. Sawyer hadn't been with anyone since the bathroom incident, at least she didn't think so. This could be a life changing experience for them both.

Kate sighed as she ran farther and farther. She couldn't go home. Sawyer would be there and she wasn't ready to talk to him. Her mind ran through places she could go to, but as she ran, she realized she was getting closer to the gravesite where Jack was buried. Tears began to fall from her eyes as she ran through the gate and found herself in front of Jack's grave.

She collapsed on the ground and read the gravestone that had his name and his date of birth and death. Below that it read:

_He will always be remembered by his parents, friends, and fiancée. _

She didn't like it. She never wanted them to put that on there, but they wanted it. It was like his parents didn't want her to move on, to have a new life. But she deserved a happy life, didn't she?

Maybe she didn't. Maybe she wasn't supposed to move on. She knew she would never forget the impact that Jack had on her life, but now she realized that she was capable of loving someone else that could be just as special, maybe even more. She closed her eyes as she remembered the times she had spent with Jack.

Sawyer had figured out where she had gone and went after her. Now he stood behind her.

"I miss him too."

Kate opened her eyes.

When Kate didn't show any sign of moving, Sawyer continued, looking down at the grass. "Yeah, he was a great guy. Lots of fun. Even if he was hard on himself. He got me outta a lot of trouble a bunch of times."He paused, but she didn't do anything. He wondered if she regretted kissing him.

"He would want you to move on Kate." He said quietly. "He wouldn't want you to sit around moping all the time."

When Kate still didn't do anything, Sawyer sighed. "Look, all I'm sayin is that I understand what you're goin through, cause I'm goin through it too, and if you just want us to keep movin on and pretend what happened back there didn't happen, then I will."

Sawyer turned around and went back to the house, not knowing what else to say.

A couple of hours later Kate went home. She dreaded facing Sawyer again, but she knew that she would have to sometime.

She opened the door and Charlie stood up from the couch. "Kate! Hi!"

"Hi Charlie." Kate said quietly, hoping that he wouldn't be able to tell that she had been crying.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm fine." Kate moved past him, but he grabbed onto her arm.

"Kate, you know you can tell me anything."

Kate stared into Charlie's eyes. "I just went to the graveyard. That's all."

Charlie let go of Kate and she started to go to her bedroom. Charlie sighed and sat down back on the couch.

"Hey Charlie?" Kate turned around.

"What?"

"Have you seen Sawyer lately?"

"Yeah he's in the backyard, why?"

"Just wondering." Kate went into her bedroom and Charlie went into the kitchen where Hurley was making waffles.

"Waffles for dinner?" Charlie made a face.

"Yeah dude. You've never done that before?"

"No."

"Have you ever had pizza for breakfast?" Hurley asked.

"No."

Hurley's eyes widened. "Dude. Go get the phone."

"Why?"

Sawyer walked into the kitchen to find Hurley ordering an extra large pizza with Charlie standing next to him with a huge grin on his face.

"There's pizza for dinner?" Sawyer asked.

"No this is for breakfast tomorrow. They won't let us order that early in the morning so we're ordering it now." Hurley explained.

"Those bastards." Charlie said.

Sawyer raised his eyebrows. "Okay then. Have you guys seen Kate around?"

"Yeah she just got home. She's in Jack's room, or her room." Charlie said, looking confused.

Sawyer nodded and went into the living room where he watched tv.

"Hey Hurley." Charlie said as soon as Hurley got off the phone.

"What?"

"Is it just me, or do Kate and Sawyer seem kind of mopey today?"

"Is that even a word?" Hurley asked.

"I don't know!"

"Yeah you're right. They do." Hurley and Charlie watched through the opening in the kitchen door as Kate walked out into the living room. She saw Sawyer and their eyes briefly met before Kate headed for the kitchen. Charlie and Hurley quickly moved away as she came through the door.

"Hey guys. What's for dinner?"

"Waffles!" Hurley said proudly.

"Okay."

"Yeah and they're ready so you can go tell Sawyer that we can eat now."

"I don't think I'm going to eat with you guys tonight." Kate said.

"Yes you are." Charlie said. "Now go tell Sawyer."

Kate sighed and went into the living room. "Sawyer?"

Sawyer looked at her. "What?"

"Dinner's ready."

Sawyer turned off the tv and went into the kitchen with her where they sat at the table. Charlie and Hurley sat at the ends of the table while Kate and Sawyer sat on opposite sides of the table.

The dinner was quiet and Charlie and Hurley watched Sawyer and Kate carefully throughout it. When the syrup had been nearer to Sawyer than Hurley, Kate had asked Hurley instead, and when the butter had been closer to Kate than Charlie, Sawyer had asked Charlie for it.

After dinner was done, Kate offered to clear the table and wash the dishes. Charlie and Hurley went into the living room to watch tv, and Sawyer went into the backyard.

"There's definitely something wrong with them dude." Hurley said as they watched a sitcom on the tv.

"Yeah. How are we going to figure it out?" Charlie asked.

"I don't know."

Kate stood in front of the sink washing dishes when Sawyer came up beside her. "Let me dry." Sawyer picked up a towel and began to dry the dishes that she had already set down.

"Okay. Thanks." Kate avoided Sawyer's gaze.

They washed the dishes in silence for a few minutes before Sawyer spoke up. "So Hurley and Charlie are gonna have pizza for breakfast tomorrow."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Well that's not healthy."

"Well neither is waffles for dinner!"

"True."

"So what's the deal with you?" Sawyer asked.

"What?" Kate's heart beat faster.

"You come home and don't even say hi. How rude is that?"

Kate laughed a little and Sawyer grinned as he continued. "I mean, didn't your parents ever teach you manners?"

"How about you?" Kate retorted as she looked up at Sawyer for the first time since they had started washing the dishes.

"What about me?"

"You don't even come to greet me when I do come home. I think you're the one that needs to work on manners." Kate turned the water off and they began to put away the dishes.

"So what now?" Sawyer asked as he stared at Kate.

"Well, we could do the floor." Kate said while smiling.

Sawyer looked down. "Yeah."

"What are we doing?" Kate said seriously.

"What?"

Kate just stared at Sawyer.

"I don't know what you're thinking, but I thought that we were talking about doing the floor." Sawyer said.

Kate nodded her head. "Yeah, I guess so." Sawyer watched her as she left the kitchen. He shook his head and sighed.

It was the middle of the night and Kate still couldn't sleep. She had spent the rest of the evening and the night trying to figure out how to tell Sawyer that she did want a relationship with him. She didn't understand why it was so hard, but it was. Finally, she settled on something. She stood up and left her room and went into the living room where Sawyer was sleeping on the pull out mattress in the couch, or so she thought.

He was laying there, but he wasn't sleeping. He had also spent the whole night thinking of Kate and wondering if he would be able to hold back his feelings for her if she didn't want a relationship.

Suddenly he felt movement beside him, and he turned over to find Kate laying down on the bed staring at him.

"What are you doing up Freckles?" he asked softly.

"Shh." She quieted him as she leaned in to kiss him and he kissed her back.

She pulled away and stared at him, waiting to see what he would say.

Sawyer looked at her in the darkness, her eyes a picture of perfection, and in that moment he knew that everything was going to be okay. He leaned in to kiss her again while he pulled her closer to him. She snuggled up against him and he kissed her forehead.

"So this is how it's gonna be Freckles? We're gonna fight and then make up at night?"

"We didn't fight. I just needed some time."

Suddenly they heard some noise and they turned as they watched Hurley come into the room. They laid perfectly still as he moved into the kitchen. Kate gave Sawyer another kiss, and then she went back into her bedroom.

Sawyer moved so that he was laying on his back, and he smiled as he realized that Kate really did love him. He couldn't wait to see what was going to happen next.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST or Catch and Release.

A/N: Sawyer and Kate do some major bonding this chapter.

A couple of weeks went by and Kate and Sawyer hadn't told Charlie and Hurley about their relationship. They just didn't feel like it was necessary.

Charlie and Hurley started to get suspicious though, and soon Kate knew that someone was going to say something.

Tonight, no one was home, and Kate and Sawyer were enjoying themselves out in the backyard on a hammock that they had put together a week ago. Sawyer had his arm around Kate, and she had her head on Sawyer's arm.

"Your turn." Kate said.

"My real name isn't Sawyer."

"What?"

"I picked up that name from someone in high school, and it stuck." Sawyer said, not telling the whole truth.

"Well then what is your name?"

"James."

"James? I like it."

"Don't call me it okay? It's our secret. I don't want pillbury and the hobbit to pick up on it."

"Well what if I do call you that in front of them?" Kate looked up at Sawyer with a grin.

"You wouldn't dare."

"I just might."

"Okay your turn Freckles."

Kate was quiet as she thought of something to tell him. Finally she realized that if she wanted to be with sawyer, then he needed to know.

"I-my dad used to hit me when I was a kid." Kate said quietly.

"What?"

"Yeah."

'I'm sorry." Sawyer squeezed her tightly as he kissed her cheek.

"It's okay. I told Jack about it and he helped me."

"Well did you ever tell anyone else?"

"My mom knew, because he would hit her too." Kate was close to tears.

"You didn't tell anyone else?"

Kate stayed silent.

"Oh Kate."

"Where's your parents now?"

Kate shook her head. She wasn't ready to tell him that she was a fugitive.

"If I tell you something, will you tell me?" Sawyer asked.

"It depends on what you tell me." Kate said.

Sawyer licked his lips as he thought. Finally he carefully took out a piece of paper from his pocket. "Read this."

Kate sat up while she read it, and when she was done, she was close to sobbing.

"Sawyer, this was you, wasn't it?" She looked down at him.

"I was eight when my dad came. My mom put me under the bed, and she went out. He shot her, and then he came in my room and shot himself. I stayed under there for a long time. I finally came out and ran from the house. Someone found me, and I was put in the system. I was ten before I found a family." Sawyer reached over to Kate and tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "When I was seventeen, I met Jack."

Kate looked at Sawyer through her tears, and she held Sawyer's hand against her face as he cradled her face in his hand.

Sawyer sat up as well and pulled her to him. She sobbed in his shirt, and his eyes welled up with tears.

A couple of minutes Kate pulled away and wiped her eyes, wanting to tell him what had happened to her so that he would know that he wasn't alone.

"I killed my father." Kate whispered shakily. "I blew up his house while he was inside it. My mom never forgave me. I went to see her a year later. She was dying of cancer. She was terrified of me. I never went back. That was five years ago."

"When you met Jack." Sawyer said.

"Yeah."

'Well..I guess Jack played a major part in both our lives huh?"

Kate nodded, unable to speak.

Sawyer pulled her to him again, not sure of what else to say. "It's okay Freckles. We'll be all right."

They heard a car door slam in the front yard and Kate quickly stood up from the hammock and went inside.

Sawyer didn't really understand why Kate acted like this when she was around Charlie and Hurley. He followed her in where Charlie and Hurley were unloading groceries.

He really felt that something special had happened that night that helped their relationship. He felt closer than ever to Kate, and he knew that his life was going to be changed.

A/N: Yes a short chapter, but the last chapter was really long so I thought I would give you a break.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don't own LOST or Catch and Release.

A/N: I'm sad to say this is the last chapter of this fic. Thank you guys so much for the support. It means so much to me. I'm sure I'll write another skate fic sometime in the future because I really enjoyed doing this. I want to especially thank **bonboni, SassyLostie, rlmont91, **and **xox-emily-xox**. You guys rock!

A couple of days later, Kate sat in the kitchen with Charlie while Sawyer had gone to get them all some coffee.

"So Kate." Charlie leaned against the counter while Kate sat on the other side.

"So Charlie."

"What about you and Sawyer?"

"What about us?"

"Hurley and I can see the way you look at each other, and one night I even thought I caught you two holding hands."

Kate reddened, but maintained her cool. "Sawyer and I are just friends. Leave it alone. He's nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Yeah. So don't ask about it again." Kate stood up and left the room.

Sawyer walked in with the coffee and stared at Charlie.

"Hey Sawyer." Charlie grinned.

Sawyer set the coffee on the table. "Take them. I don't want 'em." Sawyer went into his room.

An hour later, there was a knock on Kate's bedroom door. "It's open." Kate said.

Sawyer walked in and Kate looked up from where she was sitting on the bed. "Hey! I was wondering when you were going to get back. Where's the coffee?"

Sawyer didn't say anything.

"What's going on?"

"I'm going back home."

"What?"

"I'm going to San Diego. I've spent too much time here anyways."

"But I thought you said you still had a few weeks. We were going to go do some things, remember?"

"Yeah well, who wants to do anything with someone who is nothing." Sawyer stared hard at Kate, and her mouth opened wide.

"Yeah I heard. I'm glad you think so highly of us." Sawyer turned. "I'll see you later Kate."

Kate closed her eyes, and when she opened them, he was gone.

Kate spent the next few weeks moping, like Hurley had called it, and finally Hurley and Charlie felt like it needed to come to an end.

"Kate?" Charlie came out to the backyard, where Kate was laying on the hammock.

Kate didn't say anything, and he walked over to her, where he got in the hammock with her. She moved so that she was leaning on him, and he put his arm around her.

"You really love him don't you?" Charlie said

Kate looked up at him, surprised.

"You can tell me. I know, Kate. Hurley knows too."

"Really?"

"You can't hide your feelings from your best friends."

Kate sighed. "Yeah, I miss him."

"Then what are you doing here?"

"I don't know."

"Go get him!"

Kate didn't say anything.

Charlie gave her a little push. "Go!"

"Now?"

"Yes now!"

"But-"

"No! Kate you're going!" Charlie pushed Kate into the house and into the front yard where she got into the car.

"Bye Kate!" Charlie waved as she left. He smiled to himself as he went back into the house.

It didn't really click that she was going for him until she was half way there. She started to get excited, and she hoped that he still loved her.

She pulled up to his house a few hours later. She remembered coming here two months ago when she had gone to give Jack's parents his boxes. That had been a fun weekend. Sawyer's house was right on the beach, and it was more like a condo.

Kate checked herself out in the mirror. She groaned as she realized she had no makeup on. She searched the car for any lipgloss she could find, but there wasn't any.

"He's just going to have to like me for me." Kate said, and then froze when she realized what she had said. It was true, he was going to have to like her for her, and he had. The last few months he had stuck by her while she had been at an all time low. He had helped her to get out of that.

Kate got out of the car and shut the door. She rang the doorbell, but no one answered.  
She opened the door and walked inside. "Hello?"

Kate walked into the living room. "Sawyer?"

When she couldn't find him, she went out the backdoor and walked onto the beach. There, standing in the sand, was Sawyer.

Kate started walking faster, afraid that if she let herself think she wouldn't be able to move anymore.

"Hey James." Kate was right behind him.

Sawyer turned around and put a hand to his face to block the sun. "Kate?"

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for what I said. I didn't mean it. I really don't know why I said it, but I-" Kate paused, not knowing what to say. "I love you Sawyer." Kate choked up, and Sawyer watched her fall apart in front of him. She put a hand to her face, and tried to contain her sobs.

"What took you so long?" Sawyer said with a grin, and he pulled her to him, putting his arms around her.

"You forgive me?" Kate looked up at him.

"Of course I forgive you Freckles. I love you too." With that Sawyer kissed her.

Kate pulled away and smiled at the man standing in front of her. She hated herself for what she had one to him. He was the only other man in her life that had accepted her for who she was.

She still missed Jack, and she still loved him, but Sawyer was more than she could have ever hoped for, and she knew that if she let Sawyer go that she would have never been able to forgive herself, and she owed it all to Charlie.

"I missed you." Kate murmured.

"Me too. You wanna go for a swim?"

Kate smiled. That had been enough sappy stuff for him for the day. "Sure."

They walked together to the water, and Sawyer smiled as Kate laughed as the water rushed over their feet.


End file.
